15. 15 June 23, 9 pm

In English

Venue: KW Institute for Contemporary Art, Pogo Bar

Registration via pogobar@kw-berlin.de

The solo performance Hyperspace is a study of the metrics we use to measure the unknown, from the human body to the cosmos. It proposes a subtle study of the human body perceived through the prism of cosmology—a mapping of the universe within and around it. In Hyperspace, the fleshy material of the body bends, stretches, and is reconfigured at times, appearing simultaneously colossal and microscopic. James Batchelor (re)maps the interior and exterior landscapes of the body, inviting a critical gaze on masculinity and fragility through a process of curious self-discovery.

Hyperspace is the third in a series of works—together with Deepspace (2016) and Redshift (2017)—that grew from James’ opportunity to be part of a scientific expedition led by the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies to the sub-Antarctic Heard and McDonald Islands in 2016.

Choreography / Performance: James Batchelor 

Composition: Morgan Hickinbotham 

Dramaturgy: Bek Berger 

Sound Editing: Andrea Würth

James Batchelor is a choreographer from Ngunnawal country (Canberra, Australia), based in Berlin. Cycling repetitions, collapsing and expanding scale, and subtle rhythmic manipulation contribute to a sense that time is moving at a different pace in James’ work. The audience is invited to slow down together and be guided into a state of sensorial sensitivity and discovery. The overall experience is one of collective meditation, where an invisible architecture is revealed to provide a framework for making new connections and parallels to the audience’s own points of reference. His body of work—including Deepspace, Hyperspace and Shortcuts to Familiar Places—has toured extensively in Europe and Australia. He also has a dedicated teaching practice working with people of various ages and abilities.

Hyperspace was developed with partners Centro per la Scena Contemporanea, Bassano del Grappa; Dance 4, Nottingham; and Dancehouse, Melbourne. HYPERSPACE was supported by the Australia Council for the Arts, Creative Partnerships Australia through the Australian Cultural Fund, The Besen Family Foundation, The Keir Foundation and Michael Adena and Joanne Daly.